Catafalque - Definitions from Dictionary.com

5 results for: Catafalque

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

cat·a·falque

Audio Help [kat-uh-fawk, -fawlk, -falk] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	a raised structure on which the body of a deceased person lies or is carried in state.

a hearse.

[Origin: 1635–45; < F < It catafalco < LL *catafalicum scaffold, equiv. to cata- cata- + fal(a) wooden siege tower + -icum, neut. of -icus -ic

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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Catafalque

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

cat·a·falque Audio Help (kāt'ə-fālk', -fôlk') Pronunciation Key
n.

A decorated platform or framework on which a coffin rests in state during a funeral.
Roman Catholic Church A coffin-shaped structure draped with a pall, used to represent the corpse at a requiem Mass celebrated after the burial.

[French, from Italian catafalco.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
catafalque

1641, from Fr. catafalque, from It. catafalco "scaffold," from V.L. *catafalicum, from Gk. kata- "down," used in M.L. with a sense of "beside, alongside" + fala "scaffolding."

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